Cleveland Cavaliers rumors: Tristan Thompson will benefit coming off bench

The NBA is full of players on the rise and it seems that there’s no shortage of up and coming youngsters on rosters across the league. The Cleveland Cavaliers are one of those teams and despite the fact that they’re putting together a veteran team with superstar players, the younger players on the roster will no doubt benefit from the experience.

More from Cleveland Cavaliers

One of those players is Tristan Thompson, who is going to be returning to the Cleveland Cavaliers bench this season but that could change in the near future as he could play his way into either the Cavs lineup or another lineup altogether. He’s trade bait at the moment thanks to his being pushed out of the Cavs starting lineup by LeBron James, but Thompson is someone to keep an eye on this season.

According to Cody Taylor from Basketball Insiders, Thompson will benefit from his role off the bench as it will utilize his best skills and help him hone his talents.

"His role off of the bench will be to anchor the second team and to do what he does best: use his athleticism to make plays, rebound and clean up shots at the rim. Thompson now won’t be burdened with any unnecessary pressure that came with starting and being on a team with LeBron James – he will now come off of the bench and give the Cavs 20-25 minutes a game. There will be times when James and Thompson will be on the court together and Thompson fits in well with how fast James runs the floor."

Thompson may not be traded right away and he may not be moved at all, but the Cavaliers already have a valuable asset in him. He’s a starting caliber forward in the NBA and while he won’t be getting that chance to start in Cleveland, learning from LeBron James could make him very valuable on the trade market come the deadline this season.

Be sure to check FanSided.com’s official NBA page to keep up to date on the latest news and rumors from around the league all summer long.

Home/Cleveland Cavaliers